Commercial agency : The French Supreme Court approves a Court of Appeal to have validated and applied a clause of a commercial agency agreement providing the deduction from the agent’s compensation of the remuneration due to the principal under use by the agent of his customers file (Distrib/Tôlerie du Sud-Ouest)

*This article is an automatic translation of the original article, provided here for your convenience. Read the original article. Cass. com, February 21, 2012, Distrib c/ Tôlerie du Sud-Ouest, n° 11-13395 and 11-14974 The decision of the Court of Appeal of Pau (CA Pau, 31 January 2011, RG no 08/05105, Sté Distrib v Sté Tôlerie du Sud-Ouest) and, following it, the decision of the Court of Cassation which confirms it in all points shed light on the issue of remuneration for the use of customer files in principal-commercial agent relations. A commercial agent had summoned his principal in payment of severance pay and compensation in lieu of notice. Although the principal was ordered to pay these indemnities, the agent had nevertheless set off its claim against the claim it considered